The first study to link a childhood vaccine to autism was based on doctored information about the children involved, according to a new report on the widely discredited research.

The conclusions of the 1998 paper by Andrew Wakefield and colleagues was renounced by 10 of its 13 authors and later retracted by the medical journal Lancet, where it was published. Still, the suggestion the MMR shot was connected to autism spooked parents worldwide and immunization rates for measles, mumps and rubella have never fully recovered.

A new examination found, by comparing the reported diagnoses in the paper to hospital records, that Wakefield and colleagues altered facts about patients in their study

Autism traffic-pollution link...Traffic pollution tied to autism risk: studyNovember 26, 2012 - Babies who are exposed to lots of traffic-related air pollution in the womb and during their first year of life are more likely to become autistic, suggests a new study.

The findings support previous research linking how close children live to freeways with their risk of autism, according to the study's lead author. "We're not saying traffic pollution causes autism, but it may be a risk factor for it," said Heather Volk, an assistant professor at the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California in Los Angeles. Autism is a spectrum of disorders ranging from a profound inability to communicate and mental retardation to milder symptoms seen in Asperger's syndrome.

The prevalence of autism has grown over the past few years. It's now estimated that the disorder affects one in every 88 children born in the United States, which is a 25 percent increase from a 2006 estimate (see Reuters article of March 29, 2012, UPDATE 3-New high in U.S. autism rates inspires renewed debate | Reuters). The increase in autism diagnoses has also been accompanied by a growing body of research on the disorder.

Including Volk's new study, there are three articles on autism in Monday's issue of the Archives of General Psychiatry. "A decade ago, the journal published about the same number of autism articles per year," wrote Geraldine Dawson of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, in an editorial accompanying the studies.

The two other reports in the current issue deal with ways to image a person's brain to look for physical differences between an autistic and non-autistic brain. According to Dawson, who is also chief science officer of the advocacy group Autism Speaks, the number of studies on autism began to grow around 2000. Most studies, she says, deal with the biology of the disease.

The first study to link a childhood vaccine to autism was based on doctored information about the children involved, according to a new report on the widely discredited research.

The conclusions of the 1998 paper by Andrew Wakefield and colleagues was renounced by 10 of its 13 authors and later retracted by the medical journal Lancet, where it was published. Still, the suggestion the MMR shot was connected to autism spooked parents worldwide and immunization rates for measles, mumps and rubella have never fully recovered.

A new examination found, by comparing the reported diagnoses in the paper to hospital records, that Wakefield and colleagues altered facts about patients in their study

Is a label of autism lifelong?...Children 'may grow out of autism'16 January 2013 - Some young children accurately diagnosed as autistic lose their symptoms and their diagnosis as they get older, say US researchers.

The findings of the National Institutes of Health study of 112 children appears to challenge the widely held belief that autism is a lifelong condition. While not conclusive, the study, in the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, suggests some children might possibly outgrow autism. But experts urge caution. Much more work is needed to find out what might explain the findings.

Dr Deborah Fein and her team at the University of Connecticut studied 34 children who had been diagnosed with autism in early childhood but went on to function as well as 34 other children in their classes at school. On tests - cognitive and observational, as well as reports from the children's parents and school - they were indistinguishable from their classroom peers. They now showed no sign of problems with language, face recognition, communication or social interaction. For comparison, the researchers also studied another 44 children of the same age, sex and non-verbal IQ level who had had a diagnosis of "high-functioning" autism - meaning they were deemed to be less severely affected by their condition.

It became clear that the children in the optimal outcome group - the ones who no longer had recognisable signs of autism - had had milder social deficits than the high-functioning autism group in early childhood, although they did have other autism symptoms, like repetitive behaviours and communication problems, that were as severe. The researchers went back and checked the accuracy of the children's original diagnosis, but found no reason to suspect that they had been inaccurate.

Is a label of autism lifelong?...Children 'may grow out of autism'16 January 2013 - Some young children accurately diagnosed as autistic lose their symptoms and their diagnosis as they get older, say US researchers.

The findings of the National Institutes of Health study of 112 children appears to challenge the widely held belief that autism is a lifelong condition. While not conclusive, the study, in the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, suggests some children might possibly outgrow autism. But experts urge caution. Much more work is needed to find out what might explain the findings.

Dr Deborah Fein and her team at the University of Connecticut studied 34 children who had been diagnosed with autism in early childhood but went on to function as well as 34 other children in their classes at school. On tests - cognitive and observational, as well as reports from the children's parents and school - they were indistinguishable from their classroom peers. They now showed no sign of problems with language, face recognition, communication or social interaction. For comparison, the researchers also studied another 44 children of the same age, sex and non-verbal IQ level who had had a diagnosis of "high-functioning" autism - meaning they were deemed to be less severely affected by their condition.

It became clear that the children in the optimal outcome group - the ones who no longer had recognisable signs of autism - had had milder social deficits than the high-functioning autism group in early childhood, although they did have other autism symptoms, like repetitive behaviours and communication problems, that were as severe. The researchers went back and checked the accuracy of the children's original diagnosis, but found no reason to suspect that they had been inaccurate.

Sandy Hook parents set up funds for autism...Grieving Newtown couple raise money for autismFeb 4,`13 -- Josephine Gay's mother could not be with her in her final, harrowing minutes inside Sandy Hook Elementary School. She struggles with it every day, but she has taken comfort from learning that Josephine's aide wrapped her arms and body around her and other children, shielding them from the horror of a rampaging gunman.

The dying actions of Josephine's behavioral therapist, Rachel D'Avino, were hardly surprising to the girl's mother. D'Avino and other educators had close bonds with 7-year-old Josephine, who was autistic and could not speak. "She protected them and provided them with comfort and love when they really needed it," Michele Gay said in an interview. "I can't say enough about the people that worked with Joey. They were amazing." Despite the devotion of Josephine's aides, the family was constantly looking for resources to keep up the care they wanted. In her memory, Michele and Bob Gay have set up "Joey's Fund" through the Doug Flutie Jr. Foundation for Autism to help other families raising children with autism.

A social and affectionate child who loved Barbie dolls and the color purple, Josephine was in many ways the center of her family. It took months or years of work to teach her skills such as walking and eating that came easily to her two older sisters. While her father worked long hours to pay for her therapy, her mother stayed home to research treatments, deal with insurance companies and work with the support team at her school. "Sadly, health insurance covered little of her therapy, and the school system had very few resources to offer us," Michele Gay said. "We are not exceptional. We are like any other family who just won't give up on their child or their sister whether they are typical or special needs."

Josephine was among 20 first-graders killed on Dec. 14 when a gunman shot his way into the school in Newtown and opened fire with a military-style semi-automatic rifle. The shooter, Adam Lanza, killed his mother before carrying out the massacre in which he also killed six women, including D'Avino, and then committed suicide. Lanza was said to have had Asperger's syndrome, an autism-like disorder that is not associated with violence. It is not known whether he had other mental health issues. Some autism experts and advocacy groups have complained that Asperger's is being unfairly blamed for the shootings, and say people with the disorder are much more likely to be victims of bullying and violence.

Michele Gay, 40, and her husband, Bob, 52, told the AP that they are not concerned about the tragedy generating stigma for autism. "You've got to give people some credit. We have a pretty educated population and, for that matter, a lot of people have experience with autism in their families," Michele Gay said. "The numbers are staggering. If not in their family, they know somebody who has autism." Another autistic child at Sandy Hook, 6-year-old Dylan Hockley, died in the arms of his special education teacher in another classroom. His parents have set up a memorial fund of their own to help children with autism and special needs.

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